Beware Shutting Up People

Honoring who you are—what you think and how you feel—is foundational to your mental health and happiness. Yet I see too many business environments in which folks aren’t allowed this important right.

This is especially true of giving negative feedback to the leaders of the organization. The implied message here is “Shut up; I don’t care what you think or how you feel.”

Remember that caring about your followers is the best single predictor of leadership success. If you don’t support them, then you can’t realistically expect them to support you and your goals for the business. Besides, folks often have some really good ideas for improving your business.

Of course, everybody can’t have things their way all the time. The accountable leaders in power need to make the final decisions about the business.

Nothing else makes any sense. Running a business as a democracy is a train wreck because it is a) incredibly time consuming, b) you’re not fully leveraging the expertise of your functional experts, and c) you can’t hold teams accountable, only individuals.

As a leader it’s best to let folks express their thoughts and opinions freely. If you don’t, they’ll ultimately go somewhere else for the sake of their sanity and happiness.

The bottom line here is that, to run a successful business, allowing freedom of expression is essential, but it should not be confused with the wise distribution of authority and accountability needed for sustained financial success.

Don't be a stranger: (770) 993-1129, tdockery@TheResolveFirm.com